The Gustavus men’s and women’s nordic ski teams each won MIAC titles this weekend at the Graystone Trails in Saint Cloud, Minnesota. Erich Ziegler won both the freestyle and classical races for the men and Chandra Daw won the freestyle race for the women. The men’s team claimed its first ever MIAC title while the women’s team claimed its third consecutive championship.
The men won the title in convincing fashion by compiling 64 total team points in both the freestyle and classical races. St. Olaf finished second with 48, followed by St. John’s with 32 and Macalester with 12.
Erich Ziegler won the men’s 15 kilometer classic race on Sunday. He swept the weekend races for the men winning the 10 kilometer freestyle on Saturday. Gustavus claimed six of the top seven places in the classical race. Ziegler was first, followed by Andy Rishavy in third, Chuck Anderson in fourth, Dan Kueffer in fifth, Jahred Stephens in sixth and Nate Porath in seventh. Ziegler, Rishavy and Anderson earned all-conference honors by finishing in the top four. The team scores from the men’s classical race on Sunday were: Gustavus 31, St. Olaf 25, St. John’s 16 and Macalester 6.
The women’s team struggled a bit on Saturday and finished second to St. Olaf in the classical race, but held on to take the overall team title. The final overall team scores were Gustavus 57, St. Olaf 53, St. Ben’s 29, and Macalester 17.
The team scores for the women’s classical race on Sunday were St. Olaf 32, Gustavus 25, St. Ben’s 13 and Macalester 8. Chandra Daw was the top finisher for the Gusties in third place. Defending champion Ingrid Olson placed fifth, followed by Nicole Olson in seventh, Melissa Kittock in 12th and Kirsten DeVries in 15th. Daw earned all-conference honors by virtue of placing in the top four.